Removal of signs creates stir

Two signs directing motorists to an area where they can sign petitions for the recall of Mayor Jim West were removed before dawn Monday morning by a Spokane Street Department worker in a city pickup truck, city officials confirmed.

The employee was following city rules that require campaign signs to be out of the right of way and not obstructing the sidewalk, city spokeswoman Marlene Feist said. But he did not follow procedures for handling the signs, apparently destroying them rather than taking them to an area where they could be retrieved.

Shannon Sullivan, author of the recall petition, said she would file a grievance with city officials for the removal of the signs, which were donated by recall supporters. She’s also replacing the handmade signs with a lighted display at the sign-up facility in the 2300 block of North Division.

Feist said the employee, whom she did not name, reportedly came to work early and noticed the two signs at about 4:45 a.m. One was over the curb of the street, the other was blocking the view of traffic, he later told supervisors. The signs were thrown into the bed of a white city pickup and removed from the area.

City employees have the authority to remove campaign signs from sidewalks or rights of way on their own discretion, Feist said. “We remove signs a lot.”

But signs that can be reused usually are held briefly for the campaigns if they want to pick them up. In this instance, however, “he got rid of them,” Feist said.

The employee is not being disciplined, she said, but all street department employees will be having a meeting “to go over all the procedures,” Feist said.

Sullivan said she can’t understand why a city employee decided to remove signs that had been up for more than a week. The employee also left up sidewalk signs for the nearby espresso stand and tattoo parlor, she said.

She also disagrees that the signs were placed in violation of city rules.